Line #74 Main/HammerOfTheHoly


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3	%% The examples have been alphabetized. Please put any new example in its proper place in the folder rather than at the end.
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6	[[quoteright:975:[[Series/GameOfThrones https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/faithmilitantsparrows.jpg]]]]
7	[[caption-width-right:975:They'll beat the fear of God into you.]]
8
9	->''"It's so... ecclesiastical! And ''smitey!''"''
10	-->-- '''Mink''', ''Webcomic/{{Darken}}'', [[https://darkencomic.com/darken/june-16th-2006/ Chapter 11]]
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12	There's a common belief that holy men were historically prohibited from "shedding blood" in battle, leading to {{Church Militant}}s opting for blunt weapons in an effort to [[ExactWords get around the taboo]]. The historical evidence for this is limited and appears to derive mostly from the depiction of a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odo_of_Bayeux Norman bishop wielding a mace]] on ''Art/TheBayeuxTapestry''; meanwhile, monastic warriors such as the Templars happily used bladed weapons in battle. The use of scepters, staves, and gavels in Christian religious ceremonies may have entrenched the association of such instruments with priests, however. Alternatively, since blunt weapons are generally cheaper and require less training than fancy swords or spears, it may have caught on due to monks' vows of poverty and as a way of distinguishing poor priests from wealthy knights.
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14	Whatever the origins, the association stuck around, and today, religious warriors such as {{paladin}}s, war-priests, and clerics are typically depicted wielding blunt weapons. The use of appropriate metaphors such as being the "hammer of [the] God[s]," "crushing" the enemies of the faith, "smiting" the wicked, and "forging" righteousness usually follows. In some cases, the aforementioned "spilling blood" taboo may even be directly named as a justification. [[FridgeLogic Don't ask about the spikes]].
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16	As mentioned, a common trait of a ChurchMilitant, ReligiousBruiser, or WarriorMonk. A subtrope of CarryABigStick and WeaponBasedCharacterization. Compare KnightlySwordAndShield -- as a rule, paladins are associated with either this trope or that, depending on whether they lean more towards a "noble knight" or "holy warrior" archetype. Also see MartialArtsStaff, the traditional weapon of choice for [[AllMonksKnowKungFu a different sort of monk]].
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18	----
19	!!Examples:
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21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
24	* ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon'': The WhiteMagicianGirl Falin Touden uses a solid metal mace as a MagicStaff, and she's strong enough to wield it quite effectively as a weapon [[BewareTheNiceOnes if she needs to]].
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Arts]]
28	* ''Art/TheBayeuxTapestry'': As mentioned in the description, Queen Mathilde's depiction of bishop Odo Bayeux wielding a mace appears to be at least the TropeCodifier.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:Comic Books]]
32	* In Creator/MarvelComics, all the Kree Accusers wield a war-hammer called "Cosmic-Rod" as their main weapon.
33	[[/folder]]
34
35	[[folder:Literature]]
36	* ''Literature/DiscipleOfTheHolySword'': Father Cesare is a kindly priest of the Holy Order and a retired member of the Army of the Holy Iron Chain, the most powerful fighting force on the continent. When he decides to return to the battlefield, he brings out his old morning star flail to smite his foes with blows powerful enough to shatter stone.
37	* ''Literature/MalleusMaleficarum'': A medieval treatise on [[WitchHunt how to destroy witches]], its Latin title translates to "The Hammer of the Evildoers" (Traditionally translated "Hammer of the Witches" in much the same sense as Edward I of England was called the "Hammer of the Scots"). While the hammer is metaphorical, the title alone is famous and influential. It remains so even in modern times through the book's inclusion in ''Theatre/TheCrucible''.
38	* ''Literature/PrincessesOfThePizzaParlor'': Carl Pas de l'Ours Solaire's religious symbol and weapon is the ShieldBash.
39	* ''Literature/TheReynardCycle'': The smith priests of Fenix the Firebird appear to engage in this. Besides the faith maintaining a monopoly on the production of the tools of war (weapons, armor, etc.), there are apparently "battle priests" present during the Battle of the Samara in The Baron of Maleperduys. Naturally, they wield war hammers.
40	* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'':
41	** The Drowned Men, the priestly followers of Aeron Greyjoy, arm themselves with cudgels made of driftwood as a sign of devotion to their god.
42	** The Poor Fellows are an order of warriors sworn to the Faith of the Seven. Most of them are peasants and use whatever arms they can find, primarily axes and cudgels.
43	[[/folder]]
44
45	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
46	* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': The Faith Militant's Sparrows primarily wield spiked maces and hammers for combat.
47	[[/folder]]
48
49	[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
50	* Myth/RobinHood's priest companion Friar Tuck is typically depicted fighting with a mace if he fights at all.
51	[[/folder]]
52
53	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
54	* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': In the original edition of the game, Clerics could only wield blunt weapons like maces and clubs. Even in later editions, they are typically depicted wielding maces in art, and maces are generally the starting weapon of new Cleric characters.
55	* ''TabletopGame/HolyLands'':
56	** Clerics are forbidden to use any weapon that "has the primary function of drawing blood" -- wording that acknowledges the objection that people hit with blunt objects often ''do'' bleed.
57	** Reflecting a similar rationale, [[HermitGuru Nazarites]] can defend themselves using a walking stick or utility knife, but are not allowed to wield anything designed as a weapon.
58	* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'': The White colour, in the 5-colour chromatic arrangement, runs the gamut from knight templars and fundamentalists, but also to people dedicated to order:
59	** The card "Hammers of Moradin" shows a trio of dwarves, one of them holding a hammer. The card is classified as a Dwarf Cleric creature.
60	** "Banisher Cleric" is a woman clad in armour carrying a mace-like weapon with a luminous aura. Also a Human Cleric.
61	** "War Oracle" is a woman clad in golden armour and carrying a mace with a shiny head. The card is a Human Cleric creature.
62	* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'':
63	** Followers of the [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame Dwarven God]] Torag use hammers as their choice of weapon. Seeing as how Torag is a smithing god, his choice of weapon is a warhammer, and his divine symbol is an iron hammer, it comes to no surprise that his followers would use hammers as well.
64	** In gameplay, Clerics, Oracles, Inquisitors and Shamans (First Edition only) are only proficient with "simple weapons", of which maces are generally considered one of the better melee choices. However, Clerics and Inquisitors also receive proficiency with their PatronGod's favored weapon, which may be superior to a mace.
65	* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
66	** The standard weapon of the Chaplains of the Adeptus Astartes is called the Crozius Arcanum, a staff or mace typically with winged(and/or skulled) iconography. Crozius' are usually not bladed, but seeing as they're sheathed in the same matter-disrupting field as the Power Swords, that hardly matters.
67	** The main choice of weapon of Lorgar Aurelian, and his legion the Word Bearers, is that of a mace. The Word Bearers, both pre- and post-Chaos Corruption, are the most religiously fanatical members of either side. Pre Literature/HorusHeresy, Lorgar viewed his father, The Emperor, [[LikeAGodToMe as a god]] and worshiped him as such, while spreading what would eventually become the modern-day Imperial Cult. Now Lorgar and his World Bearers worship [[ReligionOfEvil Chaos Undivided]].
68	** A common weapon carried by the Imperium's Demon-hunting inquisitorial branch is the Demon Hammer, an energized hammer that is further sanctified and blessed for even more effectiveness against Warp entities. Indeed, the use of hammers is reflected in their name: the Ordo Mallaeus.
69	* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasyBattle'':
70	** Sigmar, the patron god of the Empire of Man, is strongly associated with warhammers. When he was still a mortal, he wielded a Dwarf-made hammer called ''Ghal Maraz'', "Skull-Splitter", which still serves as the traditional weapon and symbol of office for the Emperors that came after him, and his warrior-priests typically go into battle wielding heavy hammers.
71	** Ulric, an old god of war, wolves, and winter who was Sigmar's own deity in his mortal days, is also associated with hammers. In particular, the Knights of the White Wolf, a templar cavalry order sworn to him, and the Teutogen Guard, the elite bodyguards of Ulric's high priest, are both traditionally equipped with two-handed warhammers.
72	* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasyRoleplay'': Clergy of the HealerGod Shallya are forbidden to kill and use no arms or armour other than a simple staff. That said, they can still be combat-trained, and that simple staff gives bonuses both to blocking attacks and to dealing a non-lethal TapOnTheHead.
73	[[/folder]]
74
75	[[folder:Video Games]]
76	* ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'': As with ''Dungeons & Dragons'' above, Clerics start the game with a mace, and a mace is depicted on their class icon. Specific weapons enforcing the mace-religion connection are the Blood of Lathander (taken from a monastery devoted to the sun god of the same name) and the Sacred Star (purchased from the keeper of the Stormshore Tabernacle, the main temple in Act III).
77	* ''VideoGame/BattleForWesnoth'': Healer units tend to have impact weapons like staves (White Mages, Elvish Shamans and Druids, Mermaid Priestesses and Diviners, the Saurian Augur lines) and in one case flails (Mages of Light).
78	* ''VideoGame/CastleCrashers'': The church that the wedding-battle takes place in has hammers instead of crosses in its iconography, overlapping with the {{Bowdlerize}} trope.
79	* ''VideoGame/DarkDeity'': Hammers are the favored weapons of choice for the Cleric and two of its promoted classes, Inquisitor/Crusader and Guardian/Paladin. The only non-Cleric classes that wield hammers are the promoted classes of the Adept, Reverie, and Astral Seeker.
80	* ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'':
81	** The [[ChurchMilitant Warrior Nun]] Vestal wields a spiked mace, which she can use as a conduit for a HolyHandGrenade with Judgment or just whack her opponents with using Mace Bash. An entire subclass revolves around the implementation of the "Battle Vestal" strategy, AKA a frontline Vestal who primarily uses Mace Bash as opposed to her normal backline WhiteMage role.
82	** [[KnightTemplar The Fanatic]] from ''The Crimson Court'' wields a massive hammer which he will gleefully use to drive stakes into the flesh of your party members afflicted with the Crimson Curse, complimenting his overall dogmatic aesthetic.
83	* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'': The Cleric class in all three games have the Mace as their starting weapon, which is noted to be a common weapon for that line of work.
84	* ''VideoGame/{{Darkstone}}'': Zigzagged with the Monk class's weapons. Their signature weapons are hammers and maces, but another one of their signature weapons is the halberd.
85	* ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}}'':
86	** ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'': The Crusader class, introduced in the ''Reaper of Souls'' expansion, wields a large, heavy flail as their starting weapon.
87	** ''Videogame/DiabloII:'' The Paladin isn't strictly forced to use maces and hammers, but one of his most powerful skills (and one of the game's most infamous {{Game Breaker}}s) is Blessed Hammer, which summons a whirling maul of divine energy to spiral about striking every enemy surrounding you. It deals Magic damage (meaning almost nothing in the game resists it) with Undead taking extra harm from it, making it ideal for taking on the unholy hordes.
88	* ''VideoGame/DNFDuel'': The Crusader is a muscular bear of a man whose weapon of choice is a giant hammer and uses holy abilities.
89	* ''VideoGame/Dota2'': Omniknight is a devout follower of a divine being known as [[CrystalDragonJesus the Omniscience]] and, being very much an archetypal paladin-type character, fights with a large hammer. His Hammer of Purity spell has him using it to smite an enemy for heavy [[ArmorPiercingAttack Pure damage]] that scales with his basic attack damage.
90	* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'': Both major religious factions, the Imperial Cult, and the Tribunal Temple have the "Blunt Weapon" skill (which includes maces, staves, and hammers) as their only weapon-based favored skills. This means that being good with a mace is a way to rise up in their ranks.
91	* ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'': In the chapter "Heresy!", Paul Luther, a Franciscan monk, is dispatched to Oublié Cathedral to investigate rumors of a relic. He can also find a mace at the start of the chapter and wield it to defeat the eldritch monsters infesting the cathedral. To further [[{{pun}} hammer]] the point home, each of the playable characters has access to a melee weapon per chapter. In his chapter, Paul can still find a long-edged sword, but that is optional and missable. Thus, a mace is the melee weapon available to Paul Luther.
92	* ''VideoGame/EverQuest'': Clerics are restricted to 1-hand and 2-hand blunt weaponry.
93	* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
94	** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasy'', white mages are able to equip hammers in the first game to use alongside their healing and holy-based powers, including righteous spells like [[HealingHands Cure]], [[TurnUndead Dia]], and [[HolyHandGrenade Holy]].
95	** Minwu from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'' specializes in wielding maces in combat alongside a wide array of white magic.
96	* The ''VideoGame/GoldBox'' games from SSI were among the first [=AD&D=]-based video games. They implemented the first-edition game rules, which included the rule that Clerics could only use blunt weapons: hammers, maces, flails. The only ranged weapon a Cleric could use was a sling-staff.
97	* ''VideoGame/{{Hexen}}'': The player can choose between three characters, one of them being Parias the Cleric. Parias starts the game with the Mace of Contrition, and is described in-game as being a former member of church.
98	* ''VideoGame/{{Infernax}}'': Alcedor starts off wielding a mace coupled with a shield, and [[KarmaMeter should he take the path of virtue]], uses said mace to smite the demons terrorizing Upel for the good of its people.
99	* ''VideoGame/TheKingOfDragons'': Aldo the Cleric, a monk, dislikes bladed weapons, and fights with a mace instead.
100	* ''VideoGame/LegendOfLegaia'': Gala, one of the party members, is a member of the Order of Biron, an order of Eastern-style {{Warrior Monk}}s who combine spiritual teachings with martial arts training. He wields axes, clubs, and maces.
101	* ''VideoGame/LimbusCompany'': The N Corp Inquisition is a subdivision of N Corp who have taken the MegaCorp's disdain for prosthetics to cultish extremes, viewing their usage as a heresy that must be purged with their members even styling themselves after religious crusaders adorned with seals and scriptures. Hammers of varying sizes are wielded alongside giant nails and are often used as a follow-up attack to drive the nails further into their victims.
102	* ''VideoGame/LunarTheSilverStar'': Jessica de Alkirk is a priestess of Althena who uses a mace.
103	* ''VideoGame/MapleStory'': Paladins are the only Warrior-class adventurer with the ability to wield blunt weapons like hammers and maces while smiting their foes with holy powers. In addition, their signature attack, "Heaven's Hammer", causes an enormous hammer to slam into a wide area in front of the paladin.
104	* ''VideoGame/MedievalTotalWar'': The Norse War Clerics are a heavy cavalry unit that can be recruited whilst playing as Denmark if you construct the correct buildings. They are comprised of [[ChurchMilitant radical Bishops who rally together in "righteous anger"]]. They likewise are all armed with a heavy mace, being one of the few cavalry units in the game to carry blunt weapons.
105	* ''VideoGame/RagnarokOnline'': Acolytes and their associated {{Prestige Class}}es can wield maces, though Monks combine this with AllMonksKnowKungFu.
106	* ''VideoGame/ReturnToKrondor'': Late in the game, the party that travels to Haldon's Head includes Solon, a Priest of Ishap. He can only use maces and warhammers for weapons.
107	* ''VideoGame/RuneScape'': Maces are one of the few weapons that boost the wielder's Prayer skill, much like Priest Robes do, though the PlayerCharacter needn't have any religious affiliation.
108	%%** And, the Monks of Zamorak, too. -- Zero-Context Example.
109	* ''VideoGame/SymphonyOfWar'': Acolytes and Paladins are warrior women from the Church of Donar who wield one-handed hammers in battle.
110	* In the ''VideoGame/TrailsSeries'', members of the Iscario branch of the [[SaintlyChurch Septian church]] all wield maces to denote their status as servants of the church.
111	* ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'': The Hammerites are a religious order that actually use the hammer as a holy symbol. They venerate industry and construction, and their deity is called "The Builder". Naturally in combat they wield large warhammers.
112	* ''VideoGame/VermintideII'': Victor Saltzpyre's Warrior Priest career replaces his normal weapon options with a flail and an array of {{Humongous Headed Hammer}}s -- regular, extra-large, {{Dual Wield\|ing}}ed, or paired with a shield or [[ThrowTheBookAtThem blessed tome]]. The hammers are an emulation of his PatronGod Sigmar.
113	* ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'': [[ThePaladin Paladin]] heroes are depicted wielding {{Humongous Headed Hammer}}s.
114	* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'': Paladins have several abilities that include "hammer" in the name or otherwise depict hammers -- Blessed Hammer, Hammer of the Righteous, and Judgement throwing a hammer, to name just a few. One of the artifacts they get access to during the ''Legion'' expansion is a two-handed hammer once wielded by the Titan watcher Tyr.
115	[[/folder]]
116
117	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
118	* ''VisualNovel/GyakutenKenji2'': Judge Justine Courtney is portrayed as a religious servant of the Goddess of Law. In keeping with this image, she wields a [[RetractableWeapon telescoping]] gavel which she frequently swings to assert her authority or emphasize her arguments.
119	[[/folder]]
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121	[[folder:Webcomics]]
122	* ''Webcomic/{{Darken}}'': In the ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-based setting, Mink the cleric [[https://darkencomic.com/darken/june-16th-2006/ gleefully]] uses a large warhammer to back up [[ReligionIsMagic her divine magic]]. She {{lampshade\|Hanging}}s the "ecclesiastical! And smitey!" connotations but has the "holy" part backwards -- her {{patron\|God}} is the LawfulEvil[[invoked]] god of tyranny.
123	* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'': Durkon, the Order's cleric, primarily uses a warhammer in imitation of his PatronGod Thor. [[spoiler:After he comes BackFromTheDead for real, he upgrades this to a Hammer of Thunderbolts, a magic item bestowed upon him by Thor.]]
124	[[/folder]]
125
126	[[folder:Web Videos]]
127	* ''WebVideo/{{Oxventure}}'': One of the members of the Oxventurer's Guild is Egbert the Dragonborn Paladin who first joins the party in the episode "A Spot Of Bother". In battle, Egbert fights using both a morning star and the Mace of Transfiguration.
128	[[/folder]]
129
130	[[folder:Western Animation]]
131	* ''WesternAnimation/AngelWars'': The veteran guardian angel Swift's weapon of choice is a hefty one-handed hammer, which also has the ability to cast DeflectorShields. It even comes back to him when he throws it for ranged attacks.
132	* ''WesternAnimation/DragonAgeAbsolution'': Knight-Commander Tassia, the leader of the Imperial Templars, wields a large hammer.
133	[[/folder]]

Context Main / HammerOfTheHoly